Captive
by Kitty Ghost
Summary: TFP. M.E.C.H is up to their usual tricks, and unfortunately Arcee and Starscream are captured and are pressured to produce a sparkling together. It's a lot easier said than done. Arcee/Starscream, slightly AU. T for safety.
1. Tag 'Em & Bag 'Em

A/N: Yes! That's right I'm alive! I haven't submitted any stories for so long, I feel so guilty. :s But this idea came to me, and being the major Starcee shipper I am, I just had to write it.

It's slightly AU and the plot begins after 'Crossfire' but before 'Nemesis Prime'. Just thought I would share that. And if anyone spots any mistakes or thinks anyone is OOC, just say so! All reviews are wanted. ^^

So, let's begin! :3

* * *

**_Captive._**

_Chapter 1 - Tag 'Em & Bag 'Em_

* * *

Ragged breath bounced off the caves walls as a trembling Starscream propped himself up against a large boulder. His usually bright red optics were dim and cloudy, and a grim expression on his faceplate. He held his right side, where a large gash was dripping energon. In which he obtained the injury when climbing for energon scraps earlier and fell, when a sharp rock cut into his side.

Outside, the sky was dark and rain began to pour in buckets over the thick forest.

The Seeker turned his gaze towards the opening of the cave, watching the rain drops glide through the air and shrivel up into the earth. After returning from a heist for more energon scraps, he returned with very little. Without enough much needed energon, the Seeker was in a daze, and every now and then he would fall in and out of consciousness.

Forcing himself up to be in a more comfortable position and coughing roughly, Starscream panted with exhaustion. With his systems growling for energon, he let out a brief moan. _Is this really how I will die? _He held his breath for a second, trying to recollect himself. Sadly it failed.

He laid his helm onto the large boulder next to him, and offlined his optics. He listened to the near silence of the forest. So peaceful and beautiful, he could die here. He was certain he wouldn't get a proper burial, nor would anyone mourn his death. He never had any friends, only a few in the past, but he was sure they wouldn't count anymore, the Decepticons couldn't care less, and the Autobots probably wouldn't care, they probably only thought of him as a tool to receive valuable information. He scoffed. Of course the Autobots had given him a chance at one point, but he blew it. Sometimes he regretted blabbing about how he offlined Cliffjumper. If he wouldn't have said anything about the Autobot femme's former partner, he wasn't sure what would've happened. He could be one of them right now and he wouldn't be in this miserable state right now.

He clenched his servo into a light fist. He was such a fool. It seemed he was prone to making such stupid mistakes.

He thought about the Autobot femme, Arcee. He couldn't really blame her entirely for hating him. He killed her partner, and from what he'd heard about Cliffjumper, their partnership sounded a little closer than it should've been. Well, whatever they had was gone, and Starscream was to blame. It was all his fault. His poor judgement seemed to always come back and bite him in the aft.

Raising a shaky servo to his faceplate, he felt the jagged texture of his scar from his battle with Arcee. He still wondered occasionally why she'd ever let him live. He took her partner away, and she just let him go?

He'd seen her anger towards Arachnid and her constant desire for revenge for the eight-legged femme. She always intended to end Arachnid's pitiful life, as she had robbed Arcee of a partner as well. So why wasn't her hatred towards Starscream as powerful as her hate towards Arachnid?

But then again, he had helped the Autobots a few times now. He helped them in finding Orion Pax, providing the space bridge coordinates, saving Arcee's life, providing some useful information, ect. Perhaps they would give him another chance…?

Starscream gasped and quickly offlined his optics in pain, running out of time. _It's now or never._

"Optimus, we're receiving a high frequency signal. It has a massage." Ratchet announced loudly.

The kids perked up from whatever they were doing, curious of what it could be.

"Who is the signal from?" Optimus Prime questioned.

"Starscream." Ratchet stated emotionlessly.

"What would _he_ want?" Miko sneered.

Ratchet stayed silent for a moment while he read the massage, before his optics widened a bit in surprise. Jack noticed and asked, "Ratchet, what is it?"

Still a bit stunned and puzzled, Ratchet replied, "He has only one request. He wants Arcee to be groundbridged to his coordinates."

Arcee's optics widened, before her gaze hardened.

"What would he want with me?" She snorted.

"You've got as good as a guess as me." Ratchet stated. "He said for you to come alone, and to... bring a medical kit?" His puzzled look increased. "Why would he request medical attention from you? It doesn't make sense."

"I wouldn't trust him." Bulkhead spat. "Do you remember all of the bad things he's done to us? He helped M.E.C.H take 'Bee's T-Cog, and not to mention he's only good for stabbing you in the back."

Arcee remembered how Starscream saved her life just a few days ago, claiming that they were 'even'. She twiddled her thumbs, thinking. Why did he _really_ save her? There had to be another answer as to why. But Bulkhead was right, Starscream was prone to stabbing you in the back, so why didn't he then when he had the chance? "_Every sentient being deserves an opportunity for redemption, without that hope, we may never achieve lasting peace."_ Arcee remembered Optimus' words of wisdom. Could Starscream really change…?

"Power up the groundbridge." Arcee muttered crossly while walking towards Ratchet.

Ratchet looked like he was about to argue, but instead handed her a medical kit.

"Be careful." Optimus warned her. She gave him a curt nod while walking towards the activated groundbridge. Bumblebee followed, saying that he would like to accompany her for her safety, but she waved him off saying she could protect herself as she walked through the portal.

"Silas, we've picked up a distress signal."

"Who activated it?" Silas walked over to the main computer, a calm expression on his scarred face.

He didn't let the soldier answer before a sly grin crossed his face and he said mostly to himself, "Well if it isn't the traitor himself, Starscream."

The man merely shrugged. Silas' gaze hardened on the computer screen.

"Where is the mech located?" Silas demanded. After the soldier typed on the computer, he replied, "In the forests of Jasper, Nevada. Several miles from our location."

"Hmm. Any luck with finding the femme's location yet?" Silas asked.

"No."

"Then start up the helicopters immediately!" Silas shouted.

The soldiers scrambled, grabbing the necessary tools they needed, and hopped into the helicopters. Silas grinned dangerously as he entered his helicopter, murmuring to himself, "Let phase one begin."

When the groundbridge opened, Starscream flinched from the bright light, in which Starscream gripped his side while gritting his dental plates in pain.

When Arcee was completely through the portal and it was gone, she was a little blown away at the large pool of energon surrounding the Seeker.

She gave a brief cough, announcing her arrival. Starscream slowly looked up at the femme and gave a sheepish grin. Arcee's gaze hardened.

"So where does it hurt most?" She asked, sounding emotionless.

"Right here." Starscream rasped while pointing to the obvious gash in his side. Arcee huffed and kneeled down and got to work.

Starscream was a little on edge as to why she didn't demand a good reason to patch him up, or as to why she actually _came_. He opened his mouth to ask her a few questions, but he let out a groan when Arcee hit a really tender spot in his wound. Arcee, suddenly noticing her mistake, fumbled with the medical utensils and dropped one next to the mech. Starscream noticed the slight panic in her eyes for a moment and he reached down to pick up the utensil, and as Arcee ducked down to grab it as well, their helms smacked into each other.

"Ow!" They both cried out, clutching their helms.

Arcee gave Starscream a look of disgust. "Watch where you're going!" She snapped.

"You watch where you're going! Ugh, my processor ache is even worse now." He muttered.

He heard Arcee grumble something to herself that he didn't quite hear.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" He asked in an ignorant tone. Arcee kept silent, which made him frown. She grumbled again, which irritated him.

"Speak up, Autobot!" He sneered.

"How about you either shut it, or you can just stay here and rust? How does that sound?" Arcee retorted with an expression of irritation on her faceplate.

Starscream however didn't know when was a good time to shut up.

"You wouldn't _dare_ leave me here in this state! I would certainly die!" He shuttered at the thought.

"I could leave you here, right here and now! Pfft, I could finish you at this very second if I wanted to!" Arcee spat at him.

"Then why don't you?" Starscream argued back, slight anger in his optics.

Arcee stuttered for a moment. Why didn't she? 'Cause she was better than that? No, it wasn't just that, but Arcee wasn't sure what.

Starscream, noticing her silence and puzzled look, smirked.

"Do you _care _about me, _Arcee_?" He teased her.

She couldn't think of a good comeback, so she just said simply, "Keep still."

Starscream rolled his optics. Typical Autobots.

After what seemed like eons, Starscream was all repaired and felt a whole lot better. He just needed to move as little as possible so the bandages would keep his wound sealed.

"Keep your movement to a minimal, or else your wound will open up again and you'll lose even more energon." Arcee nagged Starscream. He merely shrugged it off.

"I've had much worse damages. I think I'll be okay." He got up and struggled to stay on his pedes without any support from the cave wall. His legs shaked and he collapsed to the ground. Arcee could help but feel a little bit of sympathy for the mech and she walked forward to help him up when a weird buzzing sound echoed into the cave.

Starscream perked up and listened closely for a moment.

"What is that sound?" He questioned, while looking outside the cave. Arcee listened carefully as the sound got louder and louder and louder…

Suddenly a swarm of humans surrounded the outside of the cave and a large rope was shot at Arcee and wrapped around her, causing her to fall to the ground. She fought it but it was too strong.

Panic gripped Starscream. He couldn't flee, there was nowhere to run, and he was still in no shape to fight. He raced to Arcee's side, trying to rip the rope off of her, as she was his only protection. But even his sharp claws couldn't cut it, and before he knew it a rope was wrapped around one of his legs and he was pulled to the ground. He scrabbled at the rope, and another was wrapped around one of his arms, and then another around his wings. The ropes pulled him forward. He struggled against the force but he was too weak and was easily pulled out of the cave. He was soon in the presence of Silas, with Arcee beside him, also tied up and defenceless. He managed to let out a low snarl to the M.E.C.H commander.

"What do you want, _vermin_." Starscream hissed at Silas.

Silas simply answered, "You," He glanced over at Arcee briefly, "and her."

Starscream's sharp gaze didn't stray away from the human.

Silas gave a wave over to a group of soldiers before casually saying, "Bag 'em and tag 'em." Before Starscream and Arcee could register what was happening, their vision became foggy and everything started to slow down and the two Cybertronians were embraced into darkness.

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A/N: Please feel free to review! They always make me smile. :)


	2. Expectations

_A/N: I really want to thank all of you who reviewed, favorited, alerted, ect. It really means a lot to me. :) So I'm pleased to anounce, here is chapter 2! I really worry about any character being OOC, as it drives me absolutely crazy. :s_

_I hope you enjoy this chapter. ^^ So onto the story! _

* * *

_**Captive.**_

_Chapter 2 - Expectations_

* * *

When Arcee awoke, she was greeted with more darkness, and she felt something solid pressed up against her, pushing her into another solid object. She tried to move them so she would have more room, but she realized that she was completely tied up and immobile. She looked to her right and squinted to try and make out what was pushing against her. She pushed against it, but it didn't budge. She sighed heavily, clearly irritated.

Pausing for a minute, she heard a distant sound of buzzing and every now and then whatever was containing her would shift, and would then return to normal. She shifted her weight, trying drastically to get into a more comfortable position, but that damn object wouldn't allow it.

Arcee puffed and gave up momentarily. She briefly remembered the mess she had gotten herself in. She was captured by humans, and they were heading to who-knows-where now, where she imagined she'd be strapped to an examination table and operated on. If she hadn't of came to Starscream's rescue, she would be fine right now. It was all his fault!

A groggy moan snapped Arcee out of her thoughts. She stiffened and turned her helm to her right and saw bright red optics flutter open.

Starscream, realizing what had just happened, started to panic and he whipped his helm around to face Arcee.

Their faceplates heated up, realizing that they were only mere inches away from each other. Turning away, a wave of embarrassment washed over the two 'bots.

"Erm…" Starscream wasn't really sure what to say. "Could you… move over a bit? I'm getting a real crick in my wings." He grumbled.

"You're the one who should move it!" Arcee countered.

Starscream opened his mouth to say some snarky comeback, but was interrupted when the container suddenly shifted on Starscream's side, making Arcee fall into the mech's chassis. The container stayed in this position, which made it nearly impossible for Arcee to get off of the Seeker.

He smirked, secretly enjoying the warmth of Arcee's spark near his own. Arcee tensed up and slowly looked up at the mech, noticing the goofy smirk on his face. She wished her servos weren't tied behind her back so she could've given the Seeker a swift punch to knock that grin off his face. But secretly, she was glad he was here with her. She would be more distressed if she was all alone. But the fear of being used as a lab rat was present in her processor.

Time passed and they didn't say anything to each other. Arcee relaxed slightly, and leaned on Starscream a little more, making herself somewhat comfortable. Starscream was a little surprised with the femme's actions, but he didn't complain. They closed their optics, strangely calm. That is, until the container wobbled from side to side, making the two Cybertronians crash into each other numerous times before the container abruptly stopped, leaving the Seeker on top of the two-wheeler. Arcee wheezed from the uncomfortable weight placed onto her fragile chassis. Starscream struggled to pull himself off of the femme, but he paused when he heard muffled voices outside. He franticly rolled off of Arcee and went limp. She jumped slightly when he suddenly opened his optics and frantically guestured to her to what could be the exit. Arcee heard the voices as well and then understood. Starscream shut hsi optics quickly as Arcee fell limp as well.

Light suddenly entered the tiny container and Silas appeared with some sort of machinery behind him. He examined the two robots briefly and then turned around, signalling at the man in the machinery.

Starscream peaked one of his optics open for a second to see a large machine with claws come towards him and grab him by the legs and dragged him out of the box. After he was set outside, Arcee was dragged out and set next to him.

Silas walked up to them casually and thought for a breif moment.

"Take them to the enclosure." Silas announced. The soldier in the machine nodded and grabbed Arcee and Starscream by their restrains and pulled them up into the air, making Arcee sick. She fought the urge to purge her tanks, while Starscream just prayed that they wouldn't fall.

After a brief few minutes later, they were expectedly dropped to the ground. The machine ripped their binds off of their chassis' and turned around and left. After Arcee thought it was safe she opened her optics and what she saw made her jaw drop in awe.

They were surrounded in a beautiful lush forest. Fresh green grass was underneath her chassis, and she could hear the muffled sound of running water. She looked up and saw the dark and cloudy sky, but it was blocked off by what looked like a thick glass ceiling. The enclosure was very large, definitely enough room for Starscream to fly, if he wasn't missing his T-Cog. It was actually… peaceful. Arcee slowly got up onto her pedes, still awe-struck. She looked to her side and saw Starscream with a look as _similar_ as hers.

Starscream wobbled to his pedes, also taking in the surroundings.

"How…?" Starscream trailed off, not sure how to feel about it. "Did the _humans _build this?"

"A better question is, _w__hy_?" Arcee was confused now. Why would M.E.C.H capture both of them and place them in… _this_? They were obviously up to something.

Arcee walked towards the nearby pond, and looked at her reflection, only to be interrupted by a raspy voice saying, "Greetings, Autobot."

She whipped her head up to see Silas on the other side of the pond with a smug look across his scarred face.

"Quite the view, am I right?" He remarked.

Starscream growled as he walked up beside Arcee. "What we doing here?" He sneered.

Noticing Starscream's obvious anger, Silas waved over some of his men who were carrying weapons. Arcee's hard stare didn't maneuver away from the commander.

Silas gave a dry chuckle.

"You're not even going to guess? Being the _superior _life forms, I would've thought the two of you could piece together a simple puzzle."

Starscream slightly flinched, his ego bruised. But he kept silent, thinking to himself.

"Oh and how could I ever forget to _thank you_ for your contribution to M.E.C.H's cause." The commander smirked at the Seeker. "Your information on T-Cogs and energon were _very _helpful." He taunted.

A fire of rage flashed in the Seekers optics. "Where. Is. _It?"_ He hissed.

"Unfortunately, we still do not possess enough valuable information to build our very own Cybertronian being," Silas carried on calmly, ignoring Starscream. "But we can achieve something even greater."

Arcee waited to see where this was going.

"And what's that?" Arcee cocked an eyebrow.

"Witness the miracle of _creation._" He winked at the two 'bots.

They both stood there with puzzled looks on their faceplates for a minute, and after putting the pieces together, their optics widened and they looked at each other in bewilderment.

"_What_?"

"With… _her_?"

Silas let out a snicker while he watched them fumble with their words.

"So what if we don't want to… ya'know…?" Arcee trailed off, a little embarrassed.

Silas turned very serious and growled, "We'll use force if necessary."

Arcee gulped at the thought. What was worse? _Wanting _to interfacing with the Seeker, or being _forced_? Neither seemed that great.

The commander turned his back on them both and started walking with his men towards the heavy bush while saying, "You decide. We can do this the easy way or the hard way." And then he disappeared.

The Cybertronians were left alone once again, and they both cast a glance at each other.

"Are you fragging kidding me?"

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_A/N: So tell me what you think. I always look forward to reviews! Keep 'em coming! :3_


	3. Cubes, Cuddles, & Cameras

_A/N: I really want to thank all of my faithful readers again for all of the generous reviews, favs, ect! It always makes me grin like a maniac. ;)_

_I was going to post this eariler today, but our internet crashed. But it's all fixed, so here's chapter 3! :)_

_Be prepared for some Starcee fluff. :3_

_Enjoy!_

* * *

**_Captive._**

_Chapter 3 - Cubes, Cuddles, & Cameras_

* * *

When Arcee awoke from recharge the next day, numerous thoughts emerged in her processor at once. Her optics snapped online and she partially got up to take a look around, only to be disappointed. _Nothing _changed.

She sighed and turned to her side where the pond was and softly touched the surface of the water. Ripples traveled across the water, soothing the femme. She raised her helm and looked up. The sun was exposed through the glass ceiling and the sun's rays warmed the encloser to a comfortable temperature.

A loud puff caught Arcee's attention.

Only about 50 feet from Arcee, was Starscream, climbing up a jagged rock wall. It appeared he was struggling to reach the top of the cliff.

Arcee cocked an eyebrow. What in Primus' name would he want up there?

One of his servos slipped and he frantically clawed the stone to keep him from falling. Quickly getting a good hold on the boulder, he regained his balance and heaved himself up again.

As Arcee watched the Seeker climb a smile formed on her faceplate in amusement.

Starscream, feeling that odd sensation that someone was watching him, cocked his helm around to see Arcee with a silly grin on her face. He gave her a snarky look in which she returned, but before he could open his mouth to say anything; he felt his servos slip from the rock. Before he could register what was happening, his legs buckled and he descended to the rubble beneath.

Arcee couldn't control her sudden burst of laughter. But it ceased when she realized that the Seeker wasn't moving. Jumping to her pedes, she rushed to his side.

Energon was oozing from some cuts on his armor and she noticed one of his wings was bent the opposite direction. Arcee winced, knowing that the wings of a Seeker were _very _sensitive.

Despite his injuries, Arcee grabbed his shoulders and gave him a shake, trying to bring him back to consciousness.

"C'mon, wake up!" She urged. But he didn't come to.

Arcee, sighing in defeat, grabbed his arms and with a hard tug she pulled him onto her back.

She grunted. He was _way _heavier than she thought.

_What's a good place to put him? _She thought as she took a look around. The sun was quite hot, so somewhere in the shade was preferred.

She then spotted a huge birch tree and deciding it was good enough, drug the Seeker towards it, her legs nearly buckling from the weight on her back. _Why do I always seem to be caught underneath you?_ Arcee thought sourly as she crawled over to the big birch. When she reached the tree, she backed up to the tree trunk and dropped him. But, his one servo hooked onto the femme's armor and pulled her down with him. The back of her helm hit the mech's chest hard and knocked her out.

Primus just couldn't give her a break, could he?

* * *

Arcee groaned as her systems slowly came online. Her processor ached. Her whole body ached.

Feeling rays of warm beneath her, she nuzzled closer to the unknown source of pleasure. She sighed and let a smile form on her faceplate. She suddenly felt something sharp trace her faceplate softly, and cupped her face gently. Arcee, not onlining her optics, reached her servo out and fumbled to grasp the mysterious object.

A raspy chuckle made her finally online her optics. Her faceplate heated up when she realized she was laying in Starscream's lap, with him looking down at her with amusement in his optics.

"Have a nice nap?" He asked with a smug tone.

Arcee, realizing her servo was holding Starscream's, ripped it away from his grasp. He let out another chuckle at her baffled expression.

Arcee didn't reply, knowing that he wasn't really expecting an answer. Instead, she snapped, "Could you move?"

"No, I'm quite comfortable here, actually." Starscream noticed the annoyed expression the Autobot held and gave her a cocky grin in return.

She punched him in the shoulder before she heaved herself of the mech. Starscream winced and when he thought it looked like she was going to leave him there he reached out and called her name out, "Arcee! Wait!"

The motorcycle was a little surprised that he called her by her name without a mocking tone of some sort. She turned around to face him.

"What?" She asked.

Starscream's gaze shifted down to the ground.

"You're not going to leave me here alone, are you?" Something in his optics made Arcee sympathize him for a second. Only a second.

"Fine. I won't." Arcee paused. "But, can I ask you a question?"

"Uh… sure." He waited anxiously to see what she was going to say.

"Why in Primus' name were you climbing that cliff?"

"You didn't see it?"

Arcee was confused now.

"See what?"

"There was a cube of energon up there!"

Arcee was baffled. How'd they learn about their life fuel?

Starscream, reading her puzzled expression, said, "I… _might've_ given them some information on energon." He gave her a sheepish smile.

_Well that explains a lot._

Arcee turned towards the cliff, examining it. She suddenly transformed and sped off towards it. When she was close to it, she transformed and leapt onto the ledge and pulled herself up to the top. And there was the big cube of energon, waiting to be picked up. She stepped forward and grabbed it. Then she turned back from where she came from and jumped down from the cliff while holding the energon cube carefully.

When she reached the big birch tree, Starscream grabbed the energon like a starving sparkling. Arcee gave him a cold stare and moved towards Starscream's back. The Seeker didn't notice though, and he chugged the energon down.

_Perfect. _Arcee thought with a grin. The Seeker didn't notice how close she was to his injured wing.

Arcee stretched her arms out and grinned. She then reached for Starscream's wing and before Starscream could realize what was happening, she gave a hard tug and pulled the bent wing back into place. He spit out energon in bewilderment.

"Gahhhh! That fragging _hurt!_" He shrieked as he dropped the cube of energon and frantically looked behind him to see what she had done.

Arcee on the other hand, was clearly quite proud of herself for getting his wing back to its original position.

"Oh you _poor baby_." She cooed in a teasing manner.

Starscream pretended to be hurt and pinned his wings back slightly, in which Arcee couldn't help but think he looked adorable.

"The pain's killing me." He exaggerated.

"Aww. How can I help?" Arcee played along with his act.

"Well… if it wouldn't be _too _much trouble I would _love _a massage." He gave her the 'puppy eyes'.

Arcee shifted under his gaze. It was _unbelievably_ cute. She cursed at herself for what she was about to do.

"Fine." She huffed.

Starscream was in awe that she actually agreed to his proposal. She sat beside him and made the motion for him to turn around. He reluctantly did and he laid back into Arcee. She gently smoothed his injured wing and Starscream tensed up, biting back a moan. Arcee noticed him tense up and said to him softly, "Relax."

The Seeker relaxed and rested his head on Arcee's chest, just to see her reaction. But none came. She just carried on, like nothing changed. Starscream looked up into her face, and admired her obvious beauty for what seemed like a life time.

He let a yawn escape him and he offlined his optics while Arcee massaged his shoulders gently.

It wasn't long until Arcee got tired as well and laid her helm to the side onto a tree root while Starscream's helm still laid against her chest. She looked at him from the corner of her optic and a small smile formed on her faceplate before she offlined her optics and warmly greeted the familiar darkness of sleep.

* * *

A dark laugh echoed through M.E.C.H headquarters as Silas sat at a huge desk watching a large screen. On the screen, was an image of Arcee and Starscream cuddling, causing the commander to hold an enthusiastic grin on his scarred face.

"Only in time…"

* * *

_A/N: Tell me you're thoughts on this chapter? Good, bad, great? :) I love reviews! 3_


	4. Smart Aft

_A/N: Hey guys! :) Once again, thanks for everything! And I'm happy to say, here's chapter 4! It's quite long. I'm really worn out now. But I hope it's very enjoyable for you guys. The beginning of the chapter takes place during Chapter 2, just shortly after Starscream and Arcee were captured. Just to clear that up._

_I just realized the other day that I forgot to do a disclaimer! Whoops._

_So, I don't own Transformers Prime. Or anything. At all. _

_Enjoy! :D_

* * *

**_Captive._**

_Chapter 4 - Smart Aft_

* * *

**24 Hours Earlier.**

"Arcee? _Arcee! _Do you copy?" Ratchet pounded his fists on the giant keyboard. Arcee's commlink only crackled in response. Ratchet held his helm in his servos in frustration, in which Optimus placed a servo on his shoulder. Ratchet swatted him away angrily.

"Her signal is offline." Ratchet said grimly, earning a fearful look from Bulkhead and Bumblebee.

"Is she… _dead_?" Bulkhead whispered. Bumblebee beeped in distress, optics wide in alarm.

"I can't say. Her signal's offline, which means it was either cloaked or she is offline."

"Ratchet," Optimus started, "Lock onto the previous coordinates and prepare the groundbridge. We will investigate Arcee's sudden disappearance."

Ratchet moved to the giant lever and pulled it downwards, a giant green portal appearing in response.

Optimus Prime stepped ahead and leaded Bulkhead and Bumblebee into the blinding light. Behind Ratchet's hard gaze, he pleaded Arcee would be alright and his teammates would return safely.

* * *

When the trio exited the groundbridge, they were greeted with a dark and gloomy cave.

"Take caution." Optimus warned, the other two 'bots nodding in acknowledgement.

Taking a look around, they noticed a pool of energon, dull in colour. Optimus leaned forward and examined it closely. He placed a digit into the pool and felt that the liquid was lukewarm.

"Optimus! I've found something!" Bulkhead called out. The Prime left the energon and made his way over to the wrecker. Bulkhead motioned to the ground, and Optimus discovered a slight rut. It looked like someone or something was forcefully extracted from the cave. Taking a carful step forward to avoid the evidence, he noticed a second rut. The second being much bigger than the first one.

"It appears Arcee was captured by an unknown force." Optimus announced.

"_But why's there _two _trails?" _Bumblebee beeped.

"Starscream was the only one with Arcee, that we assume. But this larger trail here," Optimus gestured to the trail in front of him, "I believe was created by a larger being. But, the size differences between the two are not drastically different. Meaning that there would not be a large difference in Arcee and its size."

"And Starscream isn't much bigger than 'Cee. He's taller, but bigger? Not really." Bulkhead said simply.

"I conclude that Arcee and Starscream were both taken as prisoners." Optimus walked past the tracks and stood outside of the cave. Observing the nearby forest, a few trees missing a number of branches caught his attention. Coming closer towards the damaged trees, the Prime looked down and the grass beneath him was flattened from could've been a huge machine. He narrowed his optics. Who would want Arcee _and _Starscream…?

"Optimus, do you copy?" Ratchet announced over the commlink.

"Affirmative." He answered.

"Any sign of Arcee or Starscream?"

"Sadly, no." Optimus paused. "But I believe I have an interpretation of who could have taken them."

Ratchet, on the other side of the commlink perked up, curious as to what the Prime had to say. "What're your thoughts, Optimus?" He asked.

Optimus was a bit hesitant to say, "I suspect that humans have captured them." He paused. "The evidence proves that human technology was present here at the time of their disappearance."

"You mean M.E.C.H." Ratchet stated with a snort. "Those humans are a pain in the aft. I could understand them taking either Arcee _or _Starscream. But _both_? What in Primus' name would they want with _both _of them?" Ratchet shouted over the commlink.

"I am uncertain, old friend." Optimus replied calmly.

"Well you're not going to obtain any more useful information there. I'm bridging you and the others back." Optimus let a small smile form on his faceplate from Ratchet's demanding tone.

"Alright." Optimus waved to Bulkhead and Bumblebee saying, "We are being groundbridged back to base."

"Already?" Bulkhead exclaimed. "But what about 'Cee? We've barely found anything that could help us find her. We've gotta keep looking."

Optimus admired his determination.

"I understand, Bulkhead. But, I do not think we will find any more clues to help us in our search for our teammate." He continued, "I believe we have gotten enough information to help aid us."

Bulkhead blinked, wondering what he meant. Opening his mouth to speak, the abrupt appearance of the groundbridge cut him off. And they walked through the portal, not entirely satisfied with what they found.

* * *

**Regular Time.**

The blinding light of the sun was what disturbed Starscream from his peaceful sleep. Grimacing in annoyance, the Seeker turned his back towards the giant gleaming star. But the giant roots of the big birch prevented him from being comfortable. Groaning, he arched his back, away from the bothersome roots, only earning more discomfort. He flipped over onto his chest and laid face down in the grass, earning an ear-piercing crack from his back. He winced from the sound and shifted himself from the pain-in-the-aft ache in his joints. Starscream pondered on how he could ease the aches and pains. Arcee had already given him a massage, so there was _no _way she'd do it again. So that was out. Perhaps he would feel a bit better if he cracked some of his joints the right way.

Opening his optics and placing his servos onto the delicate grass, he raised himself into a cat-like position and arched his back to crack it once more. Nothing happened.

Frowning, he arched his back higher for better results.

"Ack!" He cried out when it gave an ugly and loud crack. Starscream slowly lowered himself back to the ground in pain. _That wasn't my smartest idea. _He thought grimly.

Now what? What else would help with his discomfort?

"…"

The sudden realization hit him. Ice. Or something cold would do.

Carefully raising himself up onto his pedes, he hunched over a bit and looked around for something cold to ease his pain.

Remembering the nearby pond, the Seeker trudged through the grass with the pond in sight. He suddenly realized that Arcee was nowhere in sight. Shrugging it off, he continued walking towards the pond.

When he reached it, he noticed that the pond was too shallow to allow him too fully envelop himself in water. Pausing, he heard the faint sound of running water. Following his audios, he came across a fairly good sized creek. He followed the creek, still hunched over and came across a beautiful lake surrounded by big birch trees and blooming flowers. The trees were so large in some areas that they blocked the sun from certain areas in the lake. Where the sun did hit the water, it glistened a bright sky blue. Starscream was eager to feel the cold water against his armor.

Starscream submerged into the clear waters and sighed. It wasn't the first time he had been in a large amount of water before. He was a little weary to douse himself in the mysterious liquid then, but after the curiosity in him got the best of him, he realized that the water was soothing to the Seeker. The silver mech had even came to the conclusion back then that swimming was the next best thing to flying since both actions felt significantly similar. He felt so light in the water and seemed to move in slow motion, it relaxed him.

He leaned backwards and floated with his belly up. He offlined his optics and just laid in the water peacefully. He focused on the sunlight hitting his chest.

Sighing, a slight smile crossed his face. This was nice. No war. No enemies. No worries.

But he was wrong. He knew that he couldn't stay in this enclosurebeing being treated like animals forever. And he couldn't stay grounded forever either. He had to get his ability of flight at some point or else he'd go insane. It was bad enough he couldn't transform whatsoever, but being _with _someone who _could_? It was humiliating.

His thoughts drifted to the navy motorcycle. He couldn't be stuck in here with that femme either. They both had a life to live, and unfortunately, a war to fight. Both of them had their own factions… well actually Arcee had _her own _faction, friends ect. _But what do _I _have? _The Seeker thought. _Nothing._

Nobody liked him, to put it simply. He knew that for a fact. But he was… at peace with that. He'd made many mistakes, so he believed it was time to face the consequences for his actions. Like Arcee. He knew the Autobot femme wouldn't trust him. Not after what he did to Cliffjumper. Remembering the energon sticking to his servo and Cliffjumper's pleading optics as the life drained from him; for once in a long time, Starscream felt sick.

His body rocked on the surface of the water, slightly losing his balance. After taking a deep breath, he was still once more.

He onlined his optics and gave a blank stare up at the glass ceiling.

_It's awfully quiet. _Starscream thought with a bored expression. Little did he know that he was being watched by something hidden in the nearby trees. It crawled low to the ground, sneaking up on the silver mech, carefully watching its prey.

When it was at the very edge of the tree line, it leaned back and pounced forward.

Starscream didn't have time to dodge when _Arcee _came barreling into the lake, creating a large wave of water knocking his balance off and sending him down into the lake.

When Starscream resurfaced, Arcee was laughing at him. Grumbling to no one in particular, he hauled himself out of the lake, minding his sore joints, and shook the water off of his armor. Arcee's laughter seized and she chuckled, "The look on your face was priceless."

"Ha ha, very funny." He said emotionless. "I bet it'd be _funny _if you woke up one day suddenly missing an arm or two." He smirked.

"Oh really? As I recall, I've beaten you while missing an arm." She remarked as she climbed out of the lake.

"But as _I _remember, you also had _help _from your _former partner_." After he realized what he had said, he wanted to smack himself silly.

He noticed he had hit a nerve when he saw Arcee twitch slightly and curl up her fists.

"I-I didn't mean that." He stuttered. "It just… came out." He honestly thought she was going to hit him. But she never did.

"Hm." She slumped her shoulders and turned away from the Seeker. Starscream could feel the heavy tension.

He coughed. "So… where were you earlier?" He asked, trying to ease the tension in the air.

"I went for a drive. I thought it would be a good idea to explore this place and look for a way out." She replied.

"So… did you find one?"

She turned around the face the Seeker.

"No."

Starscream's wings drooped. _Just great._

"I didn't even see a way for M.E.C.H to get in here. They've got this place totally secured."

Starscream snorted. "Those _vile humans _must have nothing better to do than brainstorm ideas on how to torture us."

Arcee raised an eyebrow. "Torture? How are they _torturing _us?"

"Pffft, please. Your company isn't the greatest. And besides that, weren't you listening when _Silas _told us of our _purpose _here?" Starscream shivered from the memory.

"Yeah, I remember." She said simply.

Starscream made a face at her before saying, "No offense, but I have better things to do than _interfacing _with an _Autobot_." He scoffed.

"What do you mean by 'I have better things to do'? Like _what_?" She countered.

"Like… destroy the Decepticons!" He struggled to think of some better ideas, but none came.

"Oh? Is that so?" Arcee didn't believe him.

He straightened up before replying, "Yes," with a smug look on his face. "But I completely understand where you're coming from."

Arcee cocked an optic ridge. "Oh really, now?"

"Of course. You know, I've always had femmes chasing after me because of my good looks." He flashed a grin at her.

"Ugh. Right." She rolled her optics.

"There's no need to be offended. Just because I don't want to interface with you doesn't mean you're any less beautiful." Starscream didn't catch what he said in time, and immediately shut his mouth. He waited anxiously for Arcee's reply.

She laughed and Starscream couldn't help but feel his Spark flutter just for a second. _Only _a second.

"I'll keep that in mind." Amusment was present in her voice, causing the Seeker to mentally sigh in relief.

Arcee's attention was grabbed when she saw the silver mech's lips curl into a grin. Before she could even make a remark he suddenly lunged forward and leapt into the lake, drenching Arcee in the process.

He laughed at the motorcycle,and sent a few splashes of water her way just to annoy her. The femme huffed and wiped the water off out of her face. She gave him an unimpressed look, in which Starscream copied just to irritate the femme.

"Hey, now I look just like you." He exaggerated.

"I do _not _look like _that_." She pointed at the Seeker, only making it worse.

"_I do not look like that."_ He raised his voice, trying to copy Arcee.

"Stop." She crossed her arms over her chest. Starscream did the same.

"_Stop._" He teased.

"You just _love _to bother me, don't you?"

"Yes." Starscream smirked.

"Frag you." Arcee snapped as she climbed out of the lake, dripping droplets of water as she walked away. Starscream pulled himself up to the edge of the lake, and quickly grabbed Arcee's heel and pulled the femme back into the depths of the water.

She shrieked in surprise and she was pulled underwater. She immediately resurfaced and panted.

"Was that really necessary?" She asked in frustration.

"Yes, it was. Don't you know that I _just love_ teasing you?"

Arcee punched him in the arm as she replied, "Smart aft."

* * *

_A/N: Did you love it? Yes? No? I'd love to know! :3 I love reviews! 3_

_So until next time, peace y'all!_


	5. Update

I'm really sorry that I haven't gotten around to updating this story for a long time. It's been really crazy lately, but instead of me going on about excuses, I'd like to give you guys a bit of an update.

I've reread what I've written for Captive, and I'm not very satisfied with what I've written so I'm going to go back and rewrite it in areas that I think need it most. New content will be added but I will also be keeping quite a bit of the original. I'll probably upload all the rewrites at once so I don't have to go and delete the chapters and start fresh or confuse you guys. :p

I'll try my best to get them up asap. I just want to say thank you for all of the support and I really appreciate it. :) I love you guys and be patient for me!


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